Windmill



(No Model.)

E. S. 86 K. T. SHEFFIELD.

WINDMILL.

Patented Feb. 28, 18924.

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@ W -(Qvw UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. I

ELISIIA S. SHEFFIELD AND KIRBY T. SHEFFIELD, OF \VOODVARD, IOlVA.

WlNDMlLL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 469,343, dated February23, 1892. Application filed October 31, 1890. Serial No, 369,985. (Nomodel.)

T0 or whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, ELIsHA S. SHEFFIELD and KIRBY T. SHEFFIELD, bothcitizens of the United States of America, and residents of \Voodwarchinthe county of Dallas and State of Iowa, have invented a new and usefulWindmill, of which the following is a specification. 1

Our invention has for its object the provision of means by which theblades of the windwheel may be either mechanically or automaticallyfeathered in order to reduce the speed of the wheel or to diminish thepressure of the wind thereon, and also in such a construction of theblades of the said windwheel as to best adapt them to catch and utilizethe force of wind.

Our invention consists in a wind-wheel made up of a pair of circularframes between which the blades are pivotally secured, a central innerhub-piece secured to the axle of the wheel,which axle also constitutesand performs the function of an actuating-shaft, said hub. having spokessecured thereto and radiating therefrom and fixed to the outer one ofthe two circular frames and continuing secured at their other ends to anouter hubpiece fixed on said axle, which latter is extended beyond theface of the wind-wheel, and projecting and sliding arms which areangularly bent at one of their ends to adapt them to grasp a slidingdisk and having secured to their otherends a series of rods c011-necting said arms with one of said circular frames, so that said framemay be drawn toward or away from the other circular frame, which isfixed in a stationary position, automatically by the action of the windon a windboard pivotally connected with the sliding disk or mechanicallyby means of a rod connected in like manner adapted to be actuated by theoperator.

Our invention consists, further, in certain details of constructionhereinafter more fully described.

- Our invention consists, further, in the construction of the blades bybending each of their edges in opposite directions.

Our invention consists, further, in certain details of constructionhereinafter more fully described, reference being had to the accompanyin g drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of the top ofa windmill, showing my form of wind-wheel and connections. Fig. 2 is aplan view thereof. Fig. 3 is a face view of the outer circular frame,the blades being removed in order to more clearly show the rodconnections. Fig. l is a detail enlarged view of one of the wheelblades.Fig. 5 is a side View of the circular frames, the wheel-blades beingremoved. Fig. 6 is a front view of the wind-wheel with the fan-bladesremoved, showing the relative position of the frames, crank-arms, andother parts.

1 designates the top of the mill-tower, on the upper end of which is thepivotal hearing of the usual form of construction.

51s the horizontal actuating-shaft within the bearings 4 4 and formedinto a crank-arm at 5, townich the pump-rod 6 is coupled, the extremityof the said horizontal actuatin shaft 3 terminating in advance of theout r face of the wind-wheel.

7 is the tail-board, of common form, connected to the pivotal bearing 2by the arm 8. 9 and 10 respectively designate outer and Inner circularfraines,aud 11,Fig. 3, asnialler circular frame disposed concentricallyapproximately within the outer circular frame 9.

To the outer hub-piece 12, which latter is fixed rigidly to the shaft 3,are secured rods 13 which, after being secured to the outer circu larframe 9 at let, are bent and upwardly continued and passed through orsecured to the concentric frame 11 at 15, Fig. 2, after which they areangularly bent and finally secured to the inner hub-piece 16, whichlatter is also rigidly fixed to the shaft 3.

17 designates a disk which has a square hole in its central portion,which adapts said disk to be mounted on the forward end of the twobearing-boxes 4 4, and also to freely travel backward and forwardthereon.

18 18 are reciprocated sliding pieces, which at their rear ends are soangularly bent as to grasp the perimeter of the disk 17, as shown at 1919, said slides 18 18 being guided in staples secured to the twohub-pieces 12 and 16, as shown at 20 20 in Fig. 2; Respectively to eachof the outer ends of the slides 18 18 are pivotally secured the rods 2121 which actuate the inner circular frame 16. The wheel-blades 22 22,which are formed by bending their edges in opposite directions, aresecured pivotally between the inner and outer circular frames 9 and 10by the hinges 23 23, secured on the outer edge of the wheel-blades, andthe rods 24 24, which are secured at their ends to the circular frame 9and the concentric frame 11, the other edge of the blades being held tothe inner circular frame 11 by the hinge 25. The inner ends of the rods21v 21 are respectively pivotally connected to the rods 26 and 27, whichlatter are journaled within the two frames 9 and 11, (shown clearly inFig. 3,) and afterbeing passed through the frame 9 are bent so as toextend partially across the space between the frames 9 and 10, theirends being pivotally connected to one ofthe ends of the coupling-rods 2828, the other ends of which latter are secured to the inner frame 10.The rods 26 27 are bent so as to form the crank-arms 29 30, the arm 29of rod 26 being extended in one direction and the arm 30 of the rod 27in the opposite direction.

PivOted at 31 to the rod 8 of tail-board 7 is the double actuating-lever32, having fixed to its upper end the wind-board 33. 4

34: 34 are rods secured to the disk 17 and to the lever 31 above the rod8, the latter havtogetheragainst the centrifugal force.

ing its lower portion bent rearwardly and its end connected with theoperating-rod 35.

The operation of our improved wind-wheel is as follows: Assuming theblades 22 to be presenting the whole of their surface to the wind, thecircular frames 9 and 10 would then be in close proximity to each other,and in the event of the wind increasing in force to such an extent as tomake it desirable to decrease the pressure on the wind-wheelthe windacts upon the wind-board 33 to move the rod 32 upon its pivot, drawingupon the rods 34 34, disk 17, sliding pieces 18 18, and rods 21 21rearwardly, and, through the medium of the crank-arms 29 30, the rods 2627, and the coupling-rods 28 28, withdrawing partially or entirely thecircular moving frame 10 from the frame 9, and, since the blades 22 arepivoted between them, feathering said blades,

By this means in a heavy windthe wheel may be automatically featheredand entirely or partially stopped in its movement, as desired. By meansof the rod 35 the blades may be again brought into position or the wheelmay be entirely or partially stopped by the rod. It is also apparentthat our form of wheel is of great strength by reason of the extensionof the actuating-shaft and the bracing-rods 14, which serve to bind andhold the wheel The form of blades is of such a character as to readilycatch and utilize the force of the wind,

which after being used on each blade is freed without forming dead-airspaces.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new therein, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A wind-wheel frame for windmills, consisting of an outer circularframe, an inner circular frame of lesser diameter, a central axial shaftprojected beyond the face of the wheel, and a series of stay-rodsradiating from said shaft, at the outer end connected to the outer frameand the inner frame, their remaining ends secured to the said shaft atpoints in the rear of the outer end thereof, as and for the purposes setforth.

2. The combination, in a windmill, of two circular frames and asmallerframe in the forward one thereof, having a series of blades pivotedbetween them by means of a strap extending transversely across the saidblades, having hinged connections with the said circular frames at bothedges and with the said smaller frame at their inside forward edges insuch a manner as to adjust the blades relative to the wind when thecircular frames are contracted or separated, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination, in a windmill, of a frame consisting of an outercircular band and a concentric smaller one fixed therein, having aseries of radial bars connecting them,

approximately S-shaped bladeshinged to the I said radial barsapproximately at their outer and inner ends, and a circular band at therear edges of the said blades and having a hinged connection therewith,the Whole firmly at tached to an axial shaft by means of supporting-rodsfixed to the forward frame, to be operated in the manner set forth, forthe purposes stated.

4,. Means for feathering the blades of windmills, comprising areciprocable non-rotatable disk on the axial shaft of the wind-wheel,two or more rods fixed thereto, extending rearward, and having a pivotalconnection with the parallel supporting-bars of an approximatelyvertical vane which extends at right angles to the longitudinal plane ofthe device and normally inclines forward, thereby holding the diskforward by its weight, a cord or wire attached to the curved lower endof the said parallel supporting-bars, by which the said disk may bemanually operated, two or more. bars extending forward beyond thevertical plane of the wind-wheel, having a longitudinally-slidingconnection with its axis, having their rear ends formed in a loopoverlapping the edges of the said disk, and being freely rotatablethereon, and rods having bearings in the forward circular frame of thewindwheel and having crank-arms at both their ends attached to the saidsliding bars and to the rear circular frame of the wind-wheel in such amanner that the said sliding bar on being moved backward will separatethe said circular frames and thereby feather the blades thereof,substantially as set forth.

5. An improved windmill consisting of a supporting device, turn-table,and tail-board of common form, a wind-wheel composed of two frames, theforward one having an outer circular band, a smaller concentric onefixed therein, and a series of radial bars connecting them, a circularband in the rear thereof having metal straps hinged thereto and to thesaid radial bars and having approximately S-shaped blades fastenedthereto, means for automatically or manually operating the said blades,consisting of a vane which is pivoted to the said tail-board andnormally inclines forward and situated in such a manner as to beautomatically moved backward when the wind is too strong and having itslower end curved and a rope or wire connected thereto by which it may bemanually adjusted, two or more bars pivotally connected to the said vaneand firmly fixed to a reciprocable non-rotatable disk on the axial rodof the wheel, longitudinally-sliding rods on the axle of the wheel,extended beyond the vertical plane of the forward end thereof andattached to the said disk in such a manner as to be freely rotatablethereon, and a series of rods pivoted in the forward frame of the wheel,having crank-arms at theirboth ends attached to the said sliding rodsand to the rear circular frame of the wind-wheel in such a manner as tomove the said rear frame backward and thereby feather the blades whenthe wind operates the said vane or when it is manually operated, to beconstructed and combined substantially as shown and described, tooperate in the manner set forth.

ELISI-IA S. SHEFFIELD. KIRBY T. SHEFFIELD. Witnesses:

GEO. A. CRANDALL, S. O. OoNGER.

